Nobody asked for my review - Cunk on Earth

Cunk on Earth is a five-episode mockumentary series about human civilization that takes viewers on a hilarious and thought-provoking journey through history, offering a delightful blend of wit, absurdity, and astute observations. 

At the center of the show is Philomena Cunk (played by Diane Morgan), a brilliant clueless reporter with a deadpan expression throughout the series. She travels the world (as much as the budget of the show allows her), and asks questions to historians, professors, academicians and other experts that will look stupid at the first go, but often provokes intriguing thoughts. 

Obviously, the experts are all in the act. But one wonders how many takes it would have taken them to answer each of her questions without laughing. 

Take for example questions like, "How did Egyptians build the pyramids? Did they start at the top and work down?” or "Were numbers worth less back in ancient times?" or my personal favorite when in an interview with composer and professor Shirley Thompson, Cunk asks if the “lyrics” of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony repeat the word ‘dumb’ as a “dig at his audience”. It took me a good two minutes to compose myself after every question that was posed by Cunk.

Luckily for Cunk, they answer all her questions as sincerely as possible. 

Diane Morgan's portrayal of Philomena Cunk is masterful, and her ability to find humor in the mundane and profound is a testament to her comedic genius. She calls herself a "landmark documentary presenter" and does her best to act the part, most of the time. 

We witness her asking bizarre questions with unwavering confidence yet we also see her moments of self-doubt  such as when she confidently said that "Dance like no one's watching" was a quote by Aristotle and that it helped with her confidence.  When told it was not a quote by Aristotle, one could see the confidence wavering away. 

As a history graduate, nothing has made more sense and prompted me to question the world and its history as much as 'Cunk on Earth' has. The show challenges conventional historical narratives, especially at a time when history is constantly being rewritten and revised. At the same time, it will leave you laughing and pondering at the absurdities of the human story. 

It would take you less time than a movie to complete the series because of it being just 5 episodes, all of them which are about 30 mins each. You can binge watch it in one single day, or savor it as an episode/day, like I did. 

But do yourself a favor and go watch it. 

God knows, we all need Cunk and her humor in our lives. :)

Watch it on Netflix.